Although he’ll be moving from a 49-win team to one coming off a 20-62 season, veteran forward Julius Randle is excited by the prospect of joining the Nets and wants to be in Brooklyn, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype reports within his latest round-up of NBA intel.

Examining the trade that will send Randle to the Nets and veteran center Nic Claxton to Chicago, Scotto reports that Brooklyn’s desire to give backup big man Day’Ron Sharpe a bigger role factored into the team’s decision to trade Claxton. Sharpe has reportedly impressed people within the organization and is currently penciled in as the club’s starting center for 2026/27.

Sharpe, a 2021 first-round pick who is now the longest-tenured Net, has put up strong numbers in a modest rotation role in recent years. In 2025/26, he established new career highs in points (8.7), rebounds (6.7), assists (2.3), and steals (1.1) in 18.7 minutes per game, while also shooting a career-best 60.1% from the field.

Here are a few more highlights from Scotto:

• Bucks center Myles Turner has always known that he’d become a “strong” trade candidate in the event that Giannis Antetokounmpo is moved, according to Scotto, who notes that the Hornets, Pelicans, and Lakers have been linked to Turner in the past. While he hasn’t formally confirmed that those clubs would still have legitimate interest, Scotto suggests that all three – as well as the Celtics – could be fits for the former Pacer.
• The Trail Blazers, who have pursued both Antetokounmpo and Celtics forward Jaylen Brown this offseason, attempted to dangle their 2028 and 2030 first-round swaps with Milwaukee as part of a potential package, but were unsuccessful in those efforts, league sources tell Scotto. Barry Jackson of The Miami Herald hears that Portland was initially quite aggressive in its pursuit of Antetokounmpo, but backed off after the star forward made it clear he wouldn’t commit to a long-term extension with the Blazers.
• Reiterating that the Pistons are among the teams to express interest in Pelicans wing Trey Murphy III, as previously reported, Scotto says that big man Isaiah Stewart would almost certainly be involved if those two teams make a deal, since Stewart was one of Troy Weaver‘s favorite players when he worked in Detroit’s front office. Weaver is now New Orleans’ general manager.
• While Scotto confirms rumblings that the Lakers have some trade interest in Kel’el Ware, the Bucks aren’t expected to flip the young center to a new team, tweets Jake Fischer of The Stein Line. According to Fischer, Milwaukee liked Ware in the 2024 draft and plans to keep him. The Bucks also coveted and intend to retain Kasparas Jakucionis, another youngster being sent from Miami to Milwaukee in their Antetokounmpo blockbuster, Fischer adds.